01. Information we collect
We collect a small amount of information, and we try to collect only what we need to operate the site and stay in touch with readers who have asked to hear from us. The data falls into three buckets, listed below.
Information you give us directly
When you subscribe to the newsletter, send us a note, or fill out a form, we receive whatever you choose to type. We use that information only for the purpose you provided it — to send the newsletter, to reply to your message, to consider your pitch if you are a prospective contributor.
Information collected automatically
Like most sites, our hosting service records basic technical information about each visit: the page you loaded, the time you loaded it, your browser type, and an anonymised IP address. This data is kept in aggregate logs for a short window and is used to diagnose performance issues, defend against abuse, and understand roughly how many people are reading each essay.
Cookies and similar technologies
We use a minimal set of cookies — primarily to remember whether you have dismissed a banner, or whether you are signed in to the contributor portal. We do not use third-party advertising cookies on this site. If we ever add analytics, we will surface that here and offer a way to opt out.
02. How we use the information
We use the information we collect for three things, and three things only:
- To deliver the newsletter you subscribed to, and to remove your address if you ask us to.
- To respond to messages you send us, and to maintain a record of the conversation for as long as it is useful.
- To keep the site online, secure, and running smoothly — by reviewing logs, fixing broken pages, and blocking malicious traffic.
We do not sell, rent, or trade your information. We do not share it with advertisers. If a legal request compels us to disclose information, we will narrow the disclosure to the minimum legally required and, where lawful, notify the affected person before responding.
03. How long we keep it
Newsletter subscribers stay on our list until they unsubscribe. After you unsubscribe, we retain your email address on a suppression list so we do not accidentally email you again. Suppression records are kept indefinitely, since they serve your stated preference.
Server logs and analytics data are retained for a rolling ninety days, after which they are aggregated or deleted. Backups are encrypted and rotated on a thirty-day cycle. Email correspondence with editors is retained for as long as it remains relevant to the conversation; old threads are archived and eventually purged.
04. Your rights
You have the right to know what we hold about you, to correct it, to ask us to delete it, and to take your newsletter subscription with you if you decide to leave. If you would like to exercise any of these rights, write to us at the address on the home page. We respond to verifiable requests within thirty days.
For subscribers in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, or California, additional rights under the GDPR and CCPA apply. These include the right to data portability, the right to restrict processing, and the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority. We honour all such requests regardless of where you live.
05. Children
This site is written for an adult audience. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under sixteen. If you believe a child has provided information to us in error, please contact us and we will delete the record promptly.
06. Changes to this policy
If we make a material change to how we handle your data, we will update this page with a fresh effective date and announce the change in the next monthly newsletter. Minor edits — clarifications, typo fixes, contact updates — will be made silently. The full edit history is available on request.